Plasma Processing Apparatus And Method Of Producing Semiconductor Thin Film Using The Same

Abstract

A plasma processing apparatus characterized by comprising within a sealable chamber: an internal structural body that is disposed to be spaced apart from an inner wall surface of the chamber and that forms an inside space for housing a substrate serving as an object of processing; a substrate holding section that houses the substrate within the inside space; reactive gas supplying means for supplying a reactive gas to the inside space; a cathode and an anode that are supported by the internal structural body and disposed on both sides of the substrate within the inside space and that generate plasma discharge of the reactive gas; a heater that is supported by the internal structural body and that heats the substrate within the inside space; and heat-dissipating means capable of dissipating a Joule heat generated by the plasma discharge to outside of the inside space.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD[0001]The present invention relates to a plasma processing apparatus that performs etching or film-forming on a substrate by plasma discharge of a reactive gas as well as a method of producing a semiconductor thin film using the same.BACKGROUND ART[0002]Plasma processing apparatus are often used in producing a semiconductor element, and those having various forms are adapted for practical use in accordance with an object thereof.[0003]FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a conventional general longitudinal-type plasma processing apparatus.[0004]This plasma processing apparatus includes a chamber 11 that becomes a reaction vessel by receiving influence of outside atmospheric pressure. On the inner wall surface of the chamber 11, a cathode 2 and an anode 4 that are opposing to each other for causing plasma discharge, and a heater 24 that heats a substrate 1 (for example, a glass substrate) serving as an object of processing are disposed. Here, the heater 24 is ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0040]In the plasma processing apparatus of the present invention, the cathode, the anode, and the heater are spaced apart from the wall surface of the chamber and supported by the inside structural body, so that there is no need of reinforcement against the atmospheric pressure, leading to simplification of the whole structure of the apparatus and thereby further realizing the lowering of costs.

[0041]Also, since the plasma processing apparatus of the present invention is provided with heat-dissipating means for alleviating the temperature rise caused by the Joule heat generated in plasma discharging, the process can be stabilized by stabilizing the temperature during the plasma processing, whereby a good film having a uniform film quality and film thickness can be formed.

[0042]Further, the heat conductance to the outside of the apparatus is restrained by the heat-dissipating means, and the cooling apparatus on the outer wall surface of the chamber can be omitted, leading to simplification of the apparatus and thereby further realizing the lowering of costs.

[0043]Also, according to the method of producing a semiconductor thin film of the present invention, a semiconductor element using a semiconductor thin film or an optical thin film, such as a solar cell, a TFT, or a photo conductor, can be produced at a lower cost and with a good efficiency.

Problems solved by technology

However, since the cathode and the anode are used also as the wall surface of the chamber that is affected by the outside atmospheric pressure, the apparatus as a whole will be a large structural body, so that each constituent member will be expensive, and a cooling apparatus (cooling section) for cooling from the rear surface side of the chamber will be needed.

Therefore, in introducing electric power, it is difficult to ensure a grounding distance to the wall surface, so that the plasma discharge also is liable to be affected by the wall surface and others.

If this is carried out, the size of the chamber will have a large scale, thereby giving a factor for great increase in the costs.

For this reason, a large-scale insulating member will be needed, thereby giving a factor for great increase in the costs.

(F) When a fluorine-based etching gas is used as the reactive gas, an expensive fluorine-based rubber sealing material must be used for the vacuum sealing section of the cathode and the vacuum sealing sections of the anode near the plasma discharge region, thereby giving a factor for great increase in the costs.

(G) Since the gas exhausting outlet is disposed in one direction around the plasma discharge region, the conductance of the reactive gas will be small, making it difficult to perform exchange of a large amount of gas.

(I) In the case of a longitudinal-type plasma processing apparatus, the substrate is fixed in the surroundings, thereby raising a fear of insufficient grounding.

However, this apparatus is not provided with a mechanism that can fully alleviate the heat generation by the plasma that is generated in film forming or cleaning (etching), thereby raising a fear of inviting a large obstacle against the stability of the process.

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